Vaporizer for liquid fuel



Dec. 25, 1928. 1,696,881

' E. R. GODWARD VAPORIZER FOR LIQUID FUEL Filed April l, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

Patented Dec, 25, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,696,881 PATENT OFFICE.

ERNEST R. GODWABD, OF NEW YOB-K, N. Y., ASSIGNOB T0 `THE ECLIPSE PETROL ECONOMIZER SYSTEM COMPANY, LIMITED, 0F CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND,

A CORPORATION OF NEW ZEALAND.

varomzan non LIQUID IUEL.

Application led April 1,

This invention relates, generally, to improvements in fuel vaporizers for use in connection with internal combustion engines, and for other uses; and, lthe invention has reference, more particularly, to a novel con-` struction of vaporizing device involving and adapted to apply the general principles of the character of -vaporizer apparatus which is shown and described in my co-pending application for United States Letters Patent, filed August 26th, 1921, Serial No. 495,757. l

This invention has for its principal objectl to provide in combination with a vaporizing means, having a perpendicular liquid fuel supporting means of extensive surface area and providing a plurality of outwardly extending curved passages, together with a heat transfer means, a secondary means for receiving the vaporized fuel, said secondary means having devices for controll ling the admission thereinto of atmospheric air for intermixture with the vaporized fuel' prior to its delivery to the point of combustion, such, for example, as the -an internal combustion engine.

` Other objects of thisl invention, not at this time more particularly enumerated, will be clearly understood from the following detailed description of the same.

With the various objects of this invention in view, the same consists, primarily, in the novel vaporizer for combustible-fuel here-r inafter set forth; and, the invention Aconsists, furthermore, in the novel arrangements and combinations of the various devices and parts, as Well as in tlie'details vof the con-l struction of the same, all of which willbe hereinafter more fully described, and then nally embodied in' the claims appended hereto.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhichzy' Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of the novel vaporizer device made according to and embodying the principles of this invention; Figure 2 is a fragmentary vertical longitudinal section showing the operation of the'air admission means into the secondary mixing chamber; Figure 3 is a` detail horizontal section, takenon line 3-3 in said Figure 1; Figure 4 is a detail horizontal section, taken on line 4-4 in said Figure 1: and Figure 5 is a perspective view of oneof cylinders of' 1924. seran No. 703,380.

the plates of the primary vaporizingchamr. 'Similar characters of reference are emp loyed in all of the hereinabove described views, to. indicate'corresponding parts.

Referring new to said drawings, the reference .character 6 indicates any outer casing or mam body, ypreferably of cylindrical shape. The interior of said casing 'or-main body 6 1 s transversely divided by a horizontal partition 7 to provide above the same a primary vaporizing chamber and below the same a heatmg chamber, said partition 7 serving as the hot-plate of the vaporizer means. Said partition or hot-plate 7 is provided on its under side with a plurality of depending heat conducting jections 8 which extend into s aid heating chamber. Leading into said heating chamber is an intake opening 9,'through 'which a hot'iiuid may be introduced-into said heatlng chamber, such, for example, as the hot exhaust gases discharged from an internal combustion engine. Leading out of said heating chamber is an outlet opening 10 for discharging the hot fluid from said heating chamber. Extending centrally upward through the bottom of said casing or main body, to pass through said heating chamber and through the partition or hot-plate 7 is a fuel intake conduit 11, the discharge outlet of'which ter` minates within said primary vaporizing chamber above said partition or hot-plateV 7. `The lower external extremity of said fuel intake conduit 11 is provided with an 'internally threaded socket-portion 12 adapted to receive the attachment of a liquid ,fuel'atom izing device 13, which' may be ofany wellknown or desired construction adapted to produce and deliver vinto said vaporizing chamber a rough or initial mixture of lingers or proliquid fuel and air, commonly'known as Vend to end so that when assembled together they provide convoluted arrangement radiating outward from the center toward the sides ot the vaporizing chamber. Said vertical plate sections 14 are spaced apart one from another to provide intermediate outwardly leading passages 15, the inner or receiving ends ot which converge toward the fuel intake conduit 11, and the outer or discharge ends of which terminate short of the side walls of said casing or main body 6, to thus provide an annular outgoing passage 16.

' Thesaid plate sections 14 may be maintained in properly spaced apart relation by means oit spacing bosses or tits 17 which are struck out from the bodies ot the plates, or which are otherwise provide to form spacing elements. The upper sides of said passages 15 are closed by a top-plate 18 which is engaged upon the. upper edges of said assembled plate sections 14. The inner ends of said plate sections 14 are provided with radial inwardly projecting tongues 14 at their inner upper corners which converge toward the vertical axis ot the plate section assembly. The top-plate 18 is provided with a ,depending central stud 19, which may be formed by a screw as shown in the drawings. The extremities ot the tongues 14 impinge upon said stud 19, and thus the topplate 18 is held against lateral displacement. The upper end of said vaporizing chamber is closed by a cover-plate 20, which is suitably secured to said casing or main body 6, by being threaded thereinto, or in any other manner fo'und convenient or desirable. Said coverpl ate 20 is provided with set-screws 21, which extend downwardly into said primary vaporizing chamber to engage said top-plate 18 to thereby hold the same and the convoluted arrangement of plate sections 14 against vertical displacement from the operative assembled relation above described.

In the drawings the .plates 14 are, for the purposes of greater clarity of illustration,

shown'more widely separated than would be the case in practice; and, furthermore, it 1s desirable to mention that the illustration shown in Figure 1 is no criterion as to the height of the'plates 14, as the same may be made considerably higher than therein shown,

and the casing 6 proportionately increased in.

height to accommodate the same. In fact the number, spacing and'height of the plates 14 are variable factors, and may be arranged, as to such characteristics, according to the capacity of the vaporizer or the kind of work to be done thereby.

Connected with and extending upwardly from said cover-plate 20 is a cylindrical inem-4 ber or extension 22, the interior of which provides va secondary mixing chamber 23 provided at its upper end with a discharge opening 24, which may be connected in communica tion with the intake manifold of an internal combustion engine, or with other delivery means tor conducting the vaporiaed` fuel to the desired point or combustion. Said coverplate 2O is provided with acentrally located internally threaded opening 25 in which is secured a tubular nipple 26 adapted to provide a communicating passage 27 between the interior of said vaporizing chamber and the upper portion ot said secondary mixing chamber 23, thereby providing the discharge out* let ot' the former and the intake of the latter. Said nipple 26 extends upwardly into the interior of said secondary mixing chamber 23. Engaged with said nipple 26, so as to extend between the same and the sides of the secondary mixing chamber 23 is an automatic valve means in the form of an inverted conical spiral spring 28, the lower end of which is anchored or secured to said nipple. rlhe fixed attachment of said spring 28 to the nipple 26 may be effected by providing the tormer with a cylindrical lower'end portion 28 of a size or diameter adapted to embrace the nipple, the latter having a spiral groove in its outer surface of a pitch equal to the pitch of the convolutions of the cylindrical end portion 28 of the spring, so that the spring end portion 28 may be threaded on to the nipple. The upper end ot said spring 28 is provided with a cylindrical free end portion 28 of a size or diameter adapted to normally engage the wall surface of said secondary mixing chamber 23, and so as to slidingly bear against the same. The tension of said spring 28 normally maintains its convolutions closed one upon another, so that said spring provides a, normally closed wall or valve device separat- 10 ing the lower end of said secondary mixing chamber from the upper end thereof.

Provided-in the side walls ot said extension 22, adjacent to the lower end of the same are one or more air intake ports 29, which lead 105 from the atmosphere int-o the lower end of ternal valvesleeve 30 which surrounds the lower portion of said extension 22, so as to be capable of rotation thereon. Annular shoulders 31 and 32- are provided in connection 115 with said extension 22 to retain the valveA sleeve 30 in proper assembled and operative relation to said extension, and said sleeve isl provided with an outwardly projecting lever arm 33 by means of which the same may be 120 manipulated. Said valve sleeve-30 is provided with one or more valve ports 34, which by the manipulation of said sleeve l3() may be brought into registration with the air intake ports 29 according to need.

rThe discharge end of said secondary mixing chamber 23 is provided, above the automatic valve spring 28, wit-h a pivoted throttle or buttertiy valve 35.

lin operation., when, for example, the vaporizer device is connected by its discharge end in communication with the cylinders of an internal combustion engine, the interior of the vaporizing device, and the liquid fuel atomizing device serving the same, is subjected to the effect-s of the suction stroke-3 of the pistons in the engine cylinders. Upon such occurrence, air is caused to enter the air intake 13 of the liquidfuel atomizing device 13 to thereupon atomize the liquid fuel delivered by the fuel nozzle 13, to thereby produce an initial mixture of air and liquid fuel, which is carried upward through the fuel intake conduit into the vcenter of the fuel supporting and heat conducting means formed by t-he assembled plate sections 14, to thence flow outward through the passa-ges 15. The curvature of the plates 14 tends to impart a centrifugal or whirling action to the fuel mixture, whereby the wet particles of liquid fuel suspended in the air stream are thrown upon the plate surfaces, and are caused by the air friction to be spread thereon( The lighter particles of fuel are quickly vaporized and absorbed into the air current` while the heavier wet particles deposited on the plate surfaces areV acted upon by gravity and thus tend to descend on the plates 14, and in thus descending meet with an increasing temperature, due to the conduction of heat by the plates upwardly from the hot plate 7, thereby enabling the wet particles not only to spread out but to also find that degree of heat best calculated to vaporize the same and return the same for absorption by the air stream. All ofthe above described operations are in accord with the principles set forth in my aforesaid prior application for United States Letters Patent. It follows, therefore, that the liquid fuel is thoroughly evaporated, absorbed into the air stream to provide a combustible gas which escapes from the plates 14 and passages 15 into the 'discharge passages 16 of the vaporizing chamber, whence it is drawn upward through the passage 27 into the secondary mixing chamber 23. When it is desired to serve to the engine cylinders a rich combustible gas, the valve sleeve 30 is so manipulated as to close the air intake ports 29, and consequently an undiluted combustible gas is discharged through the outlet y 24. Under 4normal engine running conditions, however, it is desirable to increase the ratio of air volume to vaporized fuel. Ordinarily this is done by increasing the volume of air admitted through the air intake of the liquid fuel atomizing device. Such practice, however, possesses certain disadvantages which it is the object of this invention to overcome, for under such practice an excess of cold air is carried into and through the vaporizing chamber with the result that the heat transferred thereto is dissipated by being absorbed by the air, whereas it isdesirable that such heat be conserved so that its effects may be devoted wit-hout necessary loss or waste to the function of liquid fuel vaporization. To this end, therefore, the air intake of the fuel atomizing device is suitably sized to provide, substantially, only such volume of air as is adequate to serve as a vehicle for carrying the liquid fuel into the vaporizing chamber, cool air being subsequently added to the combustible gas discharged from vaporizing chamber, as the same passes through the secondary mixing chamber 23, to thus increase the oxygen content of the combustible gas to a desired normal proportion or ratio. This is accomplished by adjusting the valve sleeve 30 so as to admit atmospheric air into the lower portion of the secondary mixing chamber 23, at the outer side of the automatic valve spring 28. The cont-rol and admission of the desired proportionate volume of this atmospheric air into the upper portion of the mixing chamber 23 is automatically attained by the operation of said valve spring 28, which opens under air pressure when the pressure Within the secondary mixing chamber is reduced under the pull of the suction strokes of the engine. It will be understood that the suction of the engine pistons will always reduce the pressure within the secondary mixing chamber, vaporizer and liquid fuel atomizing device so that said vaporizer and atomizing device will function at all times, but when the air intake ports 29 are opened, the atmospheric air pressure will distend the spring 28, thus separatingits coils and allowing additional air to rush directly into the secondary mixing chamber. The amount or degree of distention or opening of the spring 28 will be proportional to the pressure reduction produced by the suction strokes of the pistons, which, of course, varies with the speed ofthe engine and throttle conditions in the manner familiar tothose skilled in the art. It will therefore be evident, that the automatic valve spring, being normally closed by its inherent tension, is very sensitive and quickly responsive to variations of pressure Within the secondary mixing chamber, and consequently automatically governs the admission of air for intermixture with thecombustible gas in such manner, that the functioning of the vaporizer and liquid fuel atomizing device is not only uninterrupted and uninterfered with, but is in reality benefitted, not alone by the conservation of heat, as above mentioned, but for the further reason that a less volume of air traversing the vaporizing devices keeps the air friction within the latter from becoming excessive.

Iclaim:-

The combination with a fuel vaporizer and a secondary mixing chamber, of a fuel vaporizer discharge passage extending axially ilito said secondary mixing chamber, an automatic air admission valve formed by an inverted conical closed spiral spring fixed'at' lao its lower end in concentric relation to sfiicl discharge passage With its upper free end; movahly engaging the Wall ot said secondary mixing `chamber whereby its convolutions mayopen under externally applied air pressure, the wells of said secondary mixing chamber having air admission ports below said spiral spring valve, and si manually weeen@ rotatable Valve sleeve having ports registerzible with said air admission ports to admit lo atmospheric air to the exterior side' of said spiral spring valve.

ln testimony, that l claim the invention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 21st slay of March, 1924.

ERNEST R. GODWRD. 

